


A Good Day

by Disneyfanatic_kitty



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Family, Father-Son Relationship, Gen, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Compliant, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2019-10-30 17:24:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17832905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Disneyfanatic_kitty/pseuds/Disneyfanatic_kitty
Summary: Draco had the difficult job of telling his son about the Son of Voldemort rumour the night before Scorpius left for Hogwarts for his very first time. HPCC-compliant. Referenced my previous story "Difficult Confession" but this fic can be read on its own. Draco/Scorpius story #3





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is sort of a sequel to my older fic "Difficult Confession" but you won't have trouble understanding this without reading that one. I had the idea to write about this because Scorpius seemed to know the rumor very well in the play for someone who had been isolated from the world his entire life. When I first conceived the idea I had wanted to write this completely in Draco's perspective but then I thought the story would be much more interesting with the POV of both father and son.

Scorpius had already gone over his Hogwarts list three times to check the content of his trunk to make sure he had everything, including some personal items which were extra special to him, such as his stuffed unicorn, which had been given to him by Astoria when he had been three, and his annotated copy of  _A History of Magic_. He was doing this all over again to keep himself occupied so tomorrow would arrive sooner. He took a moment to place a hand over his chest to feel his heartbeats. It was still a night away but it felt like a miracle that this was finally happening, he was going to Hogwarts at last after dreaming about this day for years.

He had already had a very long conversation with his mum two hours ago, in which she had given him more hugs and kisses than he could have counted, so he was not expecting anyone when he heard a knock on his door. "Come in!" His heart skipped a beat as there could only be one other person who would seek him out at home and it had been a long while since he had had a real conversation with his dad.

Draco Malfoy walked in tentatively but unlike Astoria, who had looked so happy for Scorpius that his dream of going to Hogwarts was finally coming true, Scorpius thought his dad looked very serious, sad and perhaps a bit guilty, which confused him and gave him a bad feeling about this conversation. This reminded the boy a lot of a night three years ago when his dad had first told him about their family history in the Second Wizarding War, or more accurately, his dad had him narrated everything he had known about the War, which had taken them hours because he had already known all about the War even back then. "Scorpius, I know you must be busy packing your trunk but there is something I need to talk to you about… Could you take a seat for a moment?"

His dad had told him many times over the past few years that the students of Hogwarts might treat him differently because of his family name but Scorpius had a feeling that whatever his dad wanted to talk to him about now would be something even worse, he hoped that this had nothing to do with his mum. He would hate to leave her at this time if her illness was getting worse again, but he reminded himself that Astoria had looked as spirited as she had been for a while when he had seen her earlier.

"Sure." He dropped the spellbook he was holding before moving over to sit at the side of his bed. He gave his dad his most innocent and brightest smile, hoping that his smile could possibly wipe the terrible expression, which somehow looked even worse to Scorpius than the sad but accepting look his dad would wear when his mum got very sick, off of his dad's face. Draco let out a heavy sigh before walking over to take a seat on a chair, sitting right across from him.

"Have you gotten everything yet, Scorpius?"

It was obvious that Draco was trying to warm him up with a casual question but his voice sounded stressed and nothing casual at all, but Scorpius was more than willing to humour his dad that he mustered as much excitement as he could while worrying about what his dad would spring on him, if only to delay the inevitable bad news for a bit. "Oh, yes! I believe I have packed everything but I want to go over the list again just in case. There are so many of my favourite books that I would love to bring with me as well but I'm afraid that they may take up too much space and make the trunk too heavy an…"

"You can pack as many books as you want, son… I can cast a feather-light charm and an extension charm for you if you like."

Scorpius was somewhat shocked because being the gentleman his dad was, he had never ever interrupted anyone in front of him, including his grandfather to whom Draco barely talked to anymore, so he could not react for a moment, before he shyly nodded, "That would be really helpful, dad."

His father promptly walked over to the trunk to cast the charms and back. He sat back down and said, "There you go."

"Thank you so much, dad! This is awesome!" He gave his dad a grateful smile and allowed his mind a moment to drift away to the special shelf in the library dedicated to all of his favourite books now that he could pack every single one of them with him if he wanted, but perhaps that was not the best idea when he should be focusing on his studies in school and when he could read the many books in the Hogwarts library he had never read before.

"You're welcome." His dad gave him a weak smile that did not reach his eyes, before looking down to his lap. Even so, it was one of the few smiles Draco Malfoy had ever put on for his son, it made Scorpius happy that his father would smile to him even though he could sense Draco was trying to talk about something difficult. While his father would give his mum an affectionate smile occasionally, he had always looked solemn but gentle in front of Scorpius. The father and son had been spending a lot more time together than they had used to over the past year, in which Draco had been teaching his boy some defense spells and techniques, but still his father had rarely ever smiled even when Scorpius was able to master some harder spells. Scorpius knew that the Ministry of Magic monitored all underage magic but since he had not started at Hogwarts yet, his father had been teaching him using the loophole that his magic could be dismissed as uncontrollable magic at his age.

Draco held his wand with his right thumb and index finger while silently rotating it with his other hand. He did this for an awkward minute while Scorpius was debating if he should come up with something to say to his father. The former Death Eater wondered how he could possibly begin to tell his sweet son that he had been rumoured as the son of the  _Dark Lord_. Unlike every other young child of the Wizarding World who would only have a vague understanding of all the terrible things Voldemort had done, his son had always been obsessed with history that he would certainly understand the gravity of this baseless rumour and would undoubtedly be deeply hurt by it. He cursed himself for his cowardice to avoid this conversation until the very last day. His boy had been glowing with joy despite having been warned about others' prejudices towards the Malfoys when he had entered, what kind of father would he be to throw cold water on his son's excitement with something so unfair and cruel. However, as terrible as this conversation was going to be, it would be crueler for Scorpius to learn about the rumour from the other children, instead of someone he trusted because Draco was certain that the other students would have learned to hate Death Eaters that they would not hesitate to weaponise their words to hurt his boy. He knew from the cautious look his son was throwing him that the boy's mood had already been dampened but this effect was nothing compared to the imminent blow he had to give.

Finally, Draco looked Scorpius in his eye and asked, "So, how do you feel about going to Hogwarts, Scorpius?"

Scorpius tried to ignore his dad's pensiveness and said, "Excited and awesome! Mum has given me a whole pouch full of Galleon for me to buy sweets, it will be awesome to share sweets with the new friends I'm going to make on the train."

Draco said carefully, "Scorpius, it sure would be lovely if you would be able to make friends on the train, but it would be entirely okay if you do not make friends right away… I mean, you can still have a good time on the train eating sweets and rereading your favourite book."

The boy's smile disappeared and his expression turned serious, he looked down before saying "I do understand that others may not like our last name, father… but it's like mum said, perhaps they would like me if I keep being friendly and if I share sweets with them?"

Draco felt his heart broke a little looking at his son. He did not want to discourage Scorpius but he really needed to manage his expectations. "Of course your mother is right, but I just don't want you to get your hopes up only to get disappointed and hurt."

"I understand, father." Draco had long noticed that his son would call him father instead of dad when he was nervous or serious around him but it was not a good time to dwell on his thoughts. He took a deep breath and said, "Listen, Scorpius, what I'm going to tell you may upset you… In fact, you have every reason to feel upset about it but there's very little you… we all can do about it. I'm really sorry about this but I have to tell you now because I do not want you to find out about it from others, who may try to hurt you with it."

"Okay… father." Scorpius looked at his father with an expectant but slightly fearful expression.

"There has been a rumour going around in the Wizarding World for the past few years about our family…" Draco had to take a deep breath before continuing, "This is completely absurd but you know that we have isolated ourselves from the outside world because of your mum's curse." His nervous boy nodded but he looked like he had trouble comprehending what he was trying to say. "They believ… think that you," Draco could not bear to deliver this news looking at the boy's wide grey eyes that he had to turn away, "they think that you are the son of… the D-Dark Lord."


	2. Chapter 2

Instead of the hysterical screams or crying he had expected, all Draco could hear was silence. Eventually, he felt too suffocated by this dead silence that he finally raised his eyes to look at his son. The good news was that Scorpius was not crying even though his beautiful eyes did look suspiciously shinier than usual, the bad news was that the child was looking so confused and uncertain that he was not sure if the boy had even heard his words. He suddenly realised that it had been so difficult for him to let the last few words out that he had unconsciously mumbled them, he felt certain that he did not have it in him to say it all over again to the boy's face that he was holding his breath, hoping for some response from Scorpius which would indicate that he had indeed heard his words.

After one of the longest minutes he had ever experienced in his life, his son finally stuttered with an unnaturally high-pitched voice, "T-they think that… I-I am the son… son of V-Voldemort?" It was all he could do to nod.

"B-But… how could it be? I think… I-I look much more similar to y-you than to mum… also, Vo-Voldemort has d-died for so many years..."

Draco sighed again, "That's true, son… but here's the thing, almost no one outside of our family has ever seen you that they would not know how much you are like me… I mean, how much you  _look_  like me." Draco cringed internally as it felt like an insult to say that his son was like him because aside from appearances, not only was the boy so different from him, Scorpius had actually been so much  _better_  than him.

"I know this is very stupid… b-but the rumour is that because Astoria and I couldn't have children… and that your grandfather and I were so desperate for a…  _powerful heir_." He spit out  _powerful heir_  with disgust but he backtracked immediately when he realised how the sentence might have sounded to the boy. "Of course, you are not unpowerful at all, your mother and I are confident that you'll be a great wizard in time. In fact, you have been doing great with flying and the spells I have taught you… But they t-think that we were so desperate to prevent the end of the Malfoy line, that we… we u-used a Ti… Time-Turner to…s-send..."

Somehow, he just could not get himself to finish the sentence so he ended up trailing off even though he was not finished. It was one thing for his father or him to be accused of having done such terrible and idiotic things by those ignorant fools, but it was another thing for his sweet Astoria to be accused of having done something as dreadful. He closed his eyes and remained silent when what he really wanted to do was to scream from the top of his lungs about how unfair his life was, as if it was not bad enough that his beloved wife was in pain so frequently and was not expected to live past forty, no father should ever have to have such a conversation with his own son. The ever considerate Astoria had actually offered at one point to tell Scorpius about the rumour but it had been hard enough for her to always appear the most positive and healthiest as she could around their son as she had worsened considerably lately that he had not wanted to give her another heavy burden, not to mention he could not allow her precious relationship with Scorpius be tainted by this disgusting rumour.

Not for the first time, Draco wondered if his loved ones were being punished for the crimes he had committed in his youth. If this was the case, the punishments were severe indeed as both Astoria and Scorpius were such pure souls who deserved the best in life that watching them suffer had undoubtedly brought him and would continue to bring him more pain than if he were dying from a curse or being cruelly bullied by others himself.

Scorpius had been watching his dad intently and Draco had looked so sad explaining to him about the rumour. The boy felt his heart ached to see his father so upset to the point that he could not even finish the sentence that he wanted desperately to be able to comfort him somehow. He could not truly pinpoint his own emotions and feelings about the rumour yet because the shock that anyone could believe him to be anyone other than Draco Malfoy's son had not really settled and his mind was just too occupied thinking about how he could make things easier for his father, who had a deep frown on his face as if he was in pain even with his eyes closed. In the back of his mind, Scorpius was also relieved that this bad news had nothing to do with his dear mum. First things first, at least Scorpius could finish Draco's sentence for him to spare his father from having to do it because he knew very well where it was heading. "T-they think that grandfather and… you used a Time-Turner to send mum back… to produce V-Voldemort's heir?"

Draco's eyes jerked open to meet Scorpius'. He appeared as if he was seeing his son for the very first time. The child was tall for his age but it had always been easy for Draco to pretend that he was a normal carefree child when he spent time around Astoria because they were always laughing and they thoroughly enjoyed each other's company. However, looking at the melancholic but strangely determined eyes, he realised suddenly that Scorpius had grown into a truly remarkable boy who was wise beyond his years, especially with the way he handled terrible situations in life, as evident by how he was taking this news in stride and the way he had always stayed by Astoria's side during some of her worst episodes.

Eventually, the older Malfoy found his voice even though it sounded a bit hoarser than usual. "Y-yes, that's what they think. But you are my son, Scorpius, please never  _ever_  doubt this because your mother… she has sacrificed so much to bring you, our son into this world."

"Of course I know I'm your son, father." The child who looked way older than his eleven years answered solemnly but with conviction. Part of Scorpius wanted to leave it at that so he would not have to give his father any additional pain but if he wanted to be able to process what he had just heard, to mentally prepare for what his fellow schoolmates would say or do to him, a Malfoy and the son of a former Death Eater, he would need answers that he had no choice but to press Draco about the rumour.

"Hmm.… but the rumour sounds… absolutely crazy that I just don't understand how anyone could possibly believe that… I mean, mu- anyone who would like to meet him would need to go back for  _years_ … and it couldn't be that easy to get pre- get a child. And… didn't they destroy all T-Time Turners? Why would they think… that you … you and grandfather would have one?" Draco remembered when his father had shown him his most priced treasure he had hidden inside the deepest compartment within the many compartments inside his vault of his dark artefacts collection and instantly felt guilty even though all he had done had been turning a blind eye. He reminded himself to appear impassive as his son could not possibly know about their secret. Fortunately, Scorpius was not exactly expecting an answer immediately as he moved on to yet another question.

"Also… from what I have read, I-I thought V-Voldemort did not understand love… how would he... have a child?" To his boy's credit, even though he was asking so many questions, he looked calm and was questioning the rumour extremely rationally as if he was analysing a problem in his homework, instead of a rumour which was going to ruin his own social life forever.

Draco took a deep breath, he knew that he needed to appear as composed as he could answering the questions for Scorpius' sake because his son was the one who was doomed to face the consequences of this cruel rumour. "Of course the Ministry had destroyed all Time-Turners, Scorpius. And you know your grandfather has always been fascinated with dark artefacts… it just doesn't seem that much of a stretch for others that he of all people, ahem… would own a Time-Turner. But of course this is utter nonsense." He was certain that he had sounded very unconvincing but he observed the boy's reactions nonetheless and was satisfied to see that he bought his words and was earnestly nodding his head. It was hard to lie to Scorpius' trusting face but at least he had gotten those out of the way and could move on to the harder questions now.

"You're right about the dar… Voldemort as well, all he had ever loved had been power and himself and I doubt he would ever be willing to share his power with anyone, including his own blood, that is if he had an heir, which of course he had not... As for why people would believe in such a stupid rumour… I can't possibly give you a definite and satisfying answer, Scorpius. But sometimes… people can be extremely ignorant and gullible, especially when it is about someone they are prejudiced about. You would be surprised by how the most ridiculous rumour and gossip could be transformed into common knowledge and truth after being retold enough times by enough people. For a lot of people, once they have been convinced about something, they would refuse to believe in or accept anything that contradict with their belief to the point that they would abandon all logic and reasons…"

"This rumour… it may sound completely crazy… but because it's your grandfather, who had turned his back on Voldemort the moment he had disappeared by the end of the First War only to do this again to the other Death Eaters following the Second Wizarding War that a lot of the war victims believe till this day that he deserves to r… die in Azkaban… and because you're a Malfoy and a son of a Death Eater… and it doesn't help that you and Astoria have been so sheltered for the past eleven years… but because of all of these reasons, there are a lot of people out there who believe in the rumour… I'm so… so sor-sorry, Scorpius."

Draco had been able to keep himself relatively calm until the end when he choked out his last few words. The only thing he could say to his son was sorry but even a million apologies would not be enough to cover the prejudices, discriminations and bullying Scorpius would likely have to endure all because he had been born as his son. Once again, he had stopped looking at his son and by the end, he could feel tears streaming down his cheeks but he did not care anymore as he looked down to notice that his right fingers had instinctively started rubbing on his left forearm, on the scar which was being pressed against his thigh at the moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Perhaps Scorpius is a bit too mature as an eleven-year-old here but I believe that having a dying mother and a father who has been trying to prepare him for the cruel world for a long time forced him to grow up much sooner.


	3. Chapter 3

Scorpius was absolutely stunned to see his father full-on crying in front of him. He remembered having seen Draco's eyes welled up before when his mum had gotten very sick but he had never cried like this in his presence, not even on the night three years ago when he had confessed to him that he had indeed tried to kill Dumbledore and ended up almost killing two schoolmates of his.

Now it made sense to the boy why his father had seemed so sure that all the students in Hogwarts would treat him terribly because he was a Malfoy and why he had repetitively suggested for Scorpius to go to Durmstrang instead of Hogwarts. What Draco had just told him about people's attitudes towards rumours made a lot of sense as he remembered having read about the way a lot of people had believed  _Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter_  to be liars back when Voldemort had first returned at the beginning of the Second Wizarding War, just because the Ministry and the Daily Prophet had said so.

Scorpius could see the truth in his father's eyes that he had meant every single word so he knew that he would just have to cope with this rumour when he got to Hogwarts. As worrying as he felt about his classmates not wanting to make friends with him, he was not going to let a rumour stop his dream of going to Hogwarts from coming true. Of course it was also unpleasant to know that many strangers would believe him to be related to Voldemort, who had looked absolutely hideous in his later years from the old photos he had seen, when Scorpius sometimes did not even like to remember that he was related to his own grandfather, but of everything his father had just said, the rumour was certainly not what he disliked the most.

Hesitantly, Scorpius reached out his hand and placed it on his father's left hand. His father unconsciously stopped stroking his Death Mark and looked up to find himself staring at his son's watering but unrelenting grey eyes. "A former Death Eater." he corrected.

Draco felt his blood went cold. "What did you say, Scorpius?"

Scorpius was shaking with worry as he wondered if he had crossed some lines just now but he answered anyway, "You have just said that I-I'm a Malfoy and the son of a... Death Eater… but I am not. I am the son of a  _former_  Death Eater, father. Y-You are di-different from the others."

Being well-versed in history, Scorpius could practically recited the names of all of the Death Eaters who had played a significant role in either of the war. He knew all about how his own great aunt, Bellatrix Lestrange, and Barty Crouch Jr., had tortured Neville Longbottom's parents into insanity, how the Carrows had used the Cruciatus Curses on students as detentions, and how his own grandfather had placed a Horcurx in an innocent girl's hands for his own personal gain. On the other hand, he knew that Draco Malfoy had reluctantly taken the Death Mark because Lucius had failed. He knew that his father had every chance to kill Albus Dumbledore on top of the Astronomy Tower but he simply could not bring himself to do it. He knew that his father had risked his own life when he had refused to identify Harry Potter in this very Manor, thus enabling the hero to defeat Voldemort and Scorpius absolutely refused to consider his father as  _a_  Death Eater.

To Scorpius, Draco was the devoted husband of his mum, who spent most of his waking hours brewing potions and taking care of her. His father was reserved and serious around him but always patient and gentle, even when Scorpius had naughtily opened a dangerous book in his father's potion lab once. Draco had never raised his voice in front of him and Scorpius would always feel safe around him. Although he rarely had the chance to really talk with his father, Scorpius absolutely adored him that it offended him to hear Draco called himself a Death Eater, as if Bellatrix, the Carrows or even his own grandfather could even have dreamed of becoming someone as good as his father.

Draco had made it very clear to Scorpius for years that to many students, especially those whose families had suffered a great loss in the war, Scorpius would always be remembered as the son of a Death Eater even though their family had defected at the end of the war. But to his mind, the fact that his father was a good person meant all the differences. Scorpius had promised himself that he would bear with any ill treatment by the other students the Malfoy way, with dignity, without blaming his father because he was proud to be Draco's son and would hate to see his father sad.

Draco wanted to say something in return but no word seemed adequate to describe what he was feeling. Just as Scorpius had said so himself, the boy had always resembled him more than Astoria, so much so that even though his disposition was a lot like his mother, Draco usually saw Scorpius as uniquely Scorpius because the way he reacted around him was so different from his wife's mannerisms, but the way Scorpius was looking at him now reminded him so much of her. Despite being physically weak, she had always looked so strong while comforting him after he had apologised yet again for the things she had endured since becoming a Malfoy and giving birth, with the same fierceness and protectiveness in her eyes as those reflected in his eleven-year-old's eyes right now. It never failed to amaze Draco that he of all people could have a son so pure and good.

Although Scorpius was feeling awkward and uncomfortable at the moment as his father had yet to say anything, he did not feel as uneasy as before because his father's expression had softened considerably which meant that his comment had at least been well-received. His dad had almost never looked at him as he did now but somehow, his look felt very familiar, it felt just like the way his mum often looked at him, which warmed his heart so much. However, he had been so focused on his father's face that it took him a while to realise that he was still touching his father's hand. He awkwardly tried to pull away but was stopped when Draco pressed his other hand on top of it, even though his father's gaze had not left Scorpius' face the whole time. This made Scorpius felt even more awkward despite secretly liking it that he dropped his eyes. The silence dragged on until his father finally released his hand sensing how awkward it was for the boy.

"I-I'm… sorry, Scorpius, I d-don't know what had gotten into me." Draco stammered in front of his little boy.

"It's… quite alright, dad. A-Actually, I-I think it's very nice." Scorpius gave his dad a grin, he was sure he would write about this conversation in his diary after his father had left but having Draco looked at him and touched him so tenderly would definitely be the highlight he would like to remember forever, not the bit about seeing his dad so sad delivering the news.

Scorpius saw his dad taking a breath before saying, "Thank you so much for what you said… it means so much to me, even though it would not mean any difference to your schoolmates."

The child's smile disappeared when he said firmly, "It's not your fault that there is th-this rumour about me, father."

Draco definitely did not believe that to be true but he stopped himself from saying so because what he should be giving his son now was strength and support, not discouragement, especially when the boy had just bravely accepted the rumour without any fuss. Unfortunately, his silence and frown were enough indications to Scorpius that his father was still trying to blame himself for something he had no control over.

Scorpius tried to smile as widely and brightly as possible as he said, "Mum has said that it may be hard to overcome prejudices, but it's not impossible. Actually…" His smile had disappeared as he embarrassingly continued, "she told me that she didn't like you when she first knew you, dad."

Draco blinked in surprise. It was true that Astoria had not liked him when she had first known him, and with good reasons, but this was certainly not the kind of story he had expected his wife to share with their boy.

Scorpius' voice dropped to a whisper as he realised how disrespectful this might sound but he might as well tried to get his point across, "She said that if you were able to make her fall in love with you, I could overcome others' prejudices against me as well, as long as I always try to be friendly, kind and sincere."

Draco thought it over and had to agree that Astoria had had a point. If he, a disgraced wizard who had been disliked by both the "good" wizards and his pureblood peers alike, had been able to win the perfect woman's heart, who was he to say that his sweet, intelligent and considerate child would not be able to win someone over?

"Of course your mother was right, as always." he gently said at last.

Seeing that Draco had agreed to what he had just said, Scorpius cheerfully added, "Exactly. Also, remember what mum always said, dad, 'Sweets, they always help you make friends.' I'm going to buy every kind of sweets with the money mum gave me but I'm planning to get a whole bag full of Pepper Imp!"

Draco looked tenderly at his excitable son, who had just sungsong one of Astoria's favourite things to say,  _no, she sang it every single time too,_  and was talking so happily about sweets as if he had not just been told about the most terrible rumour concerning himself. He would not have believed this to be possible half an hour ago but surprisingly, he actually found himself to be in a good mood that he laughed out loud.

Scorpius was shocked to see his dad laughing because he had never seen it happened before. Feeling extremely proud of himself and reassured that he had done something right, he continued, "Mum has also told me that not all half-bloods would have been raised in the wizarding world, so hopefully some of them haven't heard of the rumour. Oh… of course, I can just try to make friends with Muggle-borns! They had so little time to learn about this world that sure they wouldn't have heard about the rumour before. If we have become friends, maybe they won't care about the rumour and will stick with me by the time they hear abo…"

Scorpius visually deflated as he remembered the Malfoys' traditional views on blood purity even though Astoria had always taught him that all wizards and witches were equal and that he should respect all beings, from pure-blood wizards to Muggle-borns, to Squibs and even house-elves. Draco had succeeded in distancing his own family from his parents for the past four years but his grandfather's "teaching" during Scorpius' childhood had definitely left an impression that the boy shuddered from remembering the way Lucius Malfoy had used that terrible word so lightly and frequently.

In his heart, he believed that his father would agree more with his mother's beliefs but this was one of those sensitive topics Draco had never talked to his son about that Scorpius inevitably felt worried that he had said the wrongest thing and had upset his father that he immediately stopped talking and looked down to avoid seeing his father's reactions.


	4. Chapter 4

Draco was in an emotional turmoil as he struggled to remember the last time he had been through as much ups and downs within such a short period of time. It had been a relief that Scorpius seemed to be able to accept the rumour relatively easily after dreading this conversation for months. Embarrassingly, he had broken down in front of his boy, but he had gotten to a relatively good place soon after because of Scorpius' little song, then he had felt relieved when he had realised that his son was right that there could be quite a number of new students who had never heard of the Malfoy name before. Unfortunately, the temporary relief he felt disappeared abruptly the moment he saw the fear and apprehension in the boy's eyes as he understood exactly why Scorpius would react in such a way.

He remembered with shame his early days as a father when he had resigned to let his ignorant father run his mouth in front of his innocent child at their dining table because he had been too much a coward to stand up to Lucius at the time. His father had been very lucky to be able to avoid going back to Azkaban after the War but instead of feeling grateful and trying to turn his life around, he had remained bitter towards Harry Potter and the "Dumbledore's Army", the Order of the Phoenix, the Ministry, his fellow purebloods who had turned their backs on him, as well as towards the entire wizarding community ever since that he seemed always determined to drag everyone around him down with him, to act as miserable as he could at all times, which had made him a toxic influence around his child.

Draco remembered the countless times his father had used the disgusting word  _Mudblood_  around his baby who could not have understood the word at the time, but he knew that he had no right to be too judgemental on Lucius when he himself had used that word so often in a fellow student's face. He still remembered the power he had felt when he had first used that word in front of Granger back when he had been a nasty little twelve-year-old himself. Maybe Scorpius should be afraid of and be disgusted of his own father after all.

He knew that Scorpius' heart was in the right places and he had the perfect values about equality, respect and humility but he also understood that he had to stop hiding behind Astoria to deliver the right teaching himself for once. Draco took a deep breath before looking Scorpius squarely in the face, "Look at me, Scorpius."

The boy timidly looked up, his expression seemed to relax when he failed to find any sign that his father was displeased. "Yes, father?"

"Listen, Scorpius. I know your grandfather had repetitively talked nonsense in front of you when you had been younger but I want you to forget everything he has ever said about blood status. Forget the words blood purity, remember the words blood equality instead. Even Muggle borns have some wizard blood in them that they are technically a lot like half-bloods. The so-called pure-bloods are not superior to half-bloods and Muggle-borns in any way so you should respect each and every one of your schoolmates regardless of their blood status."

Scorpius knew he should appear solemn because of the serious nature of what his father was teaching him about at the moment but he could not repress a wide grin while nodding attentively because Draco's speech reflected everything his mum had ever taught him regarding blood status and it made him so happy to know for certain that his father's views were the same as theirs. "I understand, dad."

Draco tried not to be distracted by Scorpius' happy smile, which completely baffled him, to continue with his speech, "Just because your grandfather is an adult doesn't make him right, Scorpius. In fact, he has been and still is very wrong about everything. Of course you are well aware that I did many terrible things myself and had believed in something very wrong when I was young, which I deeply regret now so I don't want you to make the same mistakes as I had in my past. You have your mother's heart and have likely read more books than your grandfather has ever read in his whole life that I am sure you have much better sense and are a much better judge of characters than your grandfather has ever been."

Neither the father nor son had ever openly criticised Lucius in front of the other that Scorpius gave a little sigh of relief now that he no longer had to painstakingly hide his disapproval on his grandfather's values and beliefs in front of his father for fear of appearing disrespectful.

"You should always consider your mother your role model and simply forget everything your grandfather had tried to 'teach' you. Whenever you find yourself in doubt, always try to ask yourself what your mother would think or do in the same situation. Of course you can always write to us about anything but for any quick decision you have to make on your own, you would most likely be able to make the right decisions if you try to emulate your mum."

Scorpius had been nodding with a smile on his face because even though he had not gotten the chance to apply his father's advice yet, he knew that it was excellent as his mum had always been right. Growing up he had seeked her advices on everything that he felt like he had gotten pretty good at predicting his mum's answers. Lately, he had sometimes made a decision but would ask her for advices nonetheless before going ahead, more for a confirmation that he had made the right choice, than for a genuine need for an answer. However, he stopped smiling at the end because he felt like his father had missed something.

"What about you, dad?" Scorpius asked with a small frown on his forehead.

"What about me?" Draco was confused about what his son was trying to ask.

"I do want to grow up to be a lot like mum… b-but you are… m-my role model too, dad. I-I think I want to emulate you as well. Shouldn't I do that too?" The boy sounded uncertain, not because he had any doubt that his father, who was wise and had always been protective towards his family, was a good role model, but because he remembered Astoria had told him more than once that his father was still trying to come to terms with his past after so many years.

Although Draco had tried to do everything right for the past eleven years to be the husband and father Astoria and Scorpius deserved, it felt wrong for him to ask his eleven-year-old to take a former Death Eater as his role model, so he replied cautiously, "Your mother is much wiser and more sensible than I am, Scorpius, I believe you would be better off to just try to follow her examples."

"Oh." Draco saw his son drooped his shoulders, bit his lips and was now fidgeting non-stop with his fingers. It took him off guard that his son seemed unhappy to be told not to take him as a role model. He sighed as he thought, Scorpius was way too tender-hearted to have to carry the heavy burden of their disgraced family name and dark legacy. He would gladly give away most of his fortune in exchange for a good friend for his boy, even if the friend was a Muggle-born.

"Scorpius." His father's tone was gentle and warm that Scorpius immediately stopped fidgeting as he looked up to see him lean forward to place both his hands on his shoulders.

"I'll feel happy for you if you can make a friend in Hogwarts, because there is nobody who deserves a friend as much as you do. Looking back, all I had back then were companions, I couldn't truly call anyone a friend and I think I would have turned out rather differently if I had friends back then, or if I had met your mother sooner. I am sorry you have to grow up in isolation here in the Manor, I am sorry that you mother is sick and that you have to cope with it from such a young age and... I am even more sorry that you have to live with our family name and this awful rumour because you deserve so much better… All I want for you is to have a normal childhood, a good time in school, to do all the things you enjoy and to make friends... What I want to say is that, you will have my blessing no matter who you decide to befriend in Hogwarts because I trust that whoever you choose will be a good person. I will be grateful for the lucky student who will get to become your friend, even if he or she is a Muggle-born. I might have kept asking you to consider Durmstrang but I do want things to work out for you in Hogwarts because I know how much you have always wanted to go… I-I've just been worried about you, my b…"

Draco stopped talking abruptly when Scorpius suddenly threw his arms around him. They had been facing each other with their knees touching and Scorpius still had a small frame that his hands could not go all the way around Draco that they were pressing on the sides of his back awkwardly. In reaction, Draco had let his hands fallen from his son's shoulders to his back that he was hugging him back. However, he had rarely hugged his son that it felt very unnatural to him that he was stiff as a board. Astoria had always encouraged him to show his affections to Scorpius but he just could not get himself to hug and kiss him like she did all the times. In fact, he could barely force himself to praise his son out loud most of the times even though he was insanely proud of him. Awkwardness aside, Draco felt his heart filled with love for his perfect little boy as his chin felt the touch of Scorpius' fine blonde hair.

Draco believed they had been hugging each other for half a minute when he heard his boy said in his high-pitched voice, "Thank you so much, dad." Still, his son did not let go.

When Scorpius had finally released him, he took one loving look towards the boy before saying, "I honestly do not understand what you were thanking me for, Scorpius."

"For everything, dad." Scorpius answered matter-of-factly without any hesitation.

"Ev-everything?" That did not answer his question at all.

"For teaching me so much about flying and defense, for casting the charms on my trunk, for explaining to me about the rumour, for giving your blessing to me to make friends with Muggle-borns if I want, for worrying about me… and for being my father." The boy answered earnestly without a hint of irony. Draco was touched but having told himself for years that his son was too good for him, Scorpius' words did very little to convince him otherwise.

"You will understand soon enough that having me as your father is much more a curse than something to be thankful for." Draco said melancholically.

"No… it will never be a curse to me, father." It frustrated Scorpius so much that his father seemed so determined to put himself down all the times. Scorpius knew that the two of them always had a hard time communicating with each other about their feelings and he suspected himself to be a disappointment to Draco as he was nothing like his father despite their resemblance but he had always loved and admired his father. Despite the burden of being a Malfoy, he knew he would never have it any other way.

"Father… I think I h-have a goal in Hogwarts." Scorpius said timidly.

"A goal? What goal?" Draco did not think Scorpius would have a hard time becoming the top of his class if he put his mind into it but he was taken aback by the sudden change of topic.

"I will always be friendly, helpful and respectful, to show them… to prove to them how different I am fro-from V-Voldemort. Perhaps they will realise… in time that the rumour is ridiculous and will start to forget about it, so everyone will remember me as the son of Draco Malfoy. Th-That's my goal." What Scorpius did not say out loud was that he hoped that by doing all of the above, his father could finally be proud of him, even though he was just an awkward geek.

It astounded Draco that his son could turn the rumour into something positive, a motivation, but what astounded him more was the pride in Scorpius' tone when he said "son of Draco Malfoy". He felt like he was about to choke up that he turned away, coughed twice, took a few deep breaths, before finally feeling composed enough to turn back to look at his boy. "T-That's a good idea, Scorpius… I-I think it's the best thing you can do given the circumstances, but I would prefer you to make a name for yourself because we believe you will be able to do much good to this world."

His father's emotional reaction had just freaked Scorpius out little but he felt like Draco would want him to act normal, so he pretended nothing had been wrong and gave Draco yet another smile, "Thanks, dad." But then he realised just looking at his dad after everything they had talked about was enough to trigger his premature homesickness. Scorpius could not believe that after tomorrow morning, he would not be seeing his parents for almost four months. This would be the first time he would ever be away from them and he had already started missing them.

Before he knew it, Scorpius was blinking back tears, "I-I'll m-miss you, dad."

"Oh, Scorpius… I will miss you too." Draco immediately conjured a tissue and handed it to his boy, who was full-on weeping now. A part of him wanted so much to hug his boy again but it almost felt like his thought could not reach his arm that it was now awkwardly hovering a few inches over from his son's trembling shoulders. In the end, he settled to giving Scorpius a pat on his head instead. He wanted to kiss the boy's head so badly but again, he could not bring himself to do it.

After having been reassured that Scorpius had recovered and was breathing normally, Draco decided it was time for him to bid his son goodbye. "I am sorry for taking up so much of your time, Scorpius. It's getting late now, you should go to sleep soon. You have a very long day ahead."

"Oh, sure. I'll sleep after finishing it up here." Scorpius gestured to his trunk as he remembered his new task of picking more of his favourite books to bring with him to school. Coincidentally, he let out a big yawn at this moment.

"If you would like to take your books from the library with you, you can continue tomorrow, son. I could wake you up early if you like." Draco had already stood up, he gave his bookworm of a son another pat on his head while looking at him fondly.

"Th-" Once he had started, it felt like Scorpius could not stop yawning. "That would be nice. Thank you so much, dad. Thank you for talking to me too, dad, I really like it. Goodnight!" Only Scorpius could ever like a conversation in which he had been told that he was the subject of the worst rumour in the world.

"Goodnight, Scorpius. I will see you tomorrow." Draco closed the door as he saw his precious son was waving him goodbye cheerfully despite the visible redness on his eyes.  _That went well… at least it has gone as well as it possibly could._

* * *

Scorpius was left alone again. He walked over to his trunk to finish checking the content for the fourth time, when his favourite book,  _Hogwarts: A History_ , caught his eyes. He picked the old book, which had originally been owned by his mum back when she had first gone to the school, up to cradle it in his arms.

Although he had just been told about the Son of Voldemort rumour, the boy kept saying the same thing over and over again to himself under his breath as if he could will it to come true:  _I'm going to make a friend tomorrow. I'm going to make a friend tomorrow._  For all his life, all he had ever wanted to do had been to go to Hogwarts and had a mate to get up to mayhem with. Just like Harry Potter. He did not believe himself to be too greedy, he would be so content if only he could have  _one_  mate. Was it too much to wish for a mate who would be sorted into the same house as he would?

Even though Scorpius had never been rebellious in any way and he would hate so much to disappoint his parents, he could not help fantasising about having his own adventures with a best mate of his in Hogwarts, just like Harry Potter had with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Despite knowing that his father had never gotten along with Harry Potter, Scorpius had idolised the Boy who Lived, or more like the Man who Lived, his entire life. Scorpius did not feel the need to get into some big adventure every year like Harry Potter had, but he would love to get into some adventure someday just for once, but most of all, he just really wanted to have a mate in Hogwarts.

Scorpius gingerly turned his book around that he was now holding it in his hands and looking at the Hogwarts Castle on its cover as he said out loud, "Tomorrow is going to be a good day, because I am finally going to Hogwarts!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Story title and last sentence inspired by Dear Evan Hansen.
> 
> I prefer Draco and Scorpius be honest with each other about their feelings but truthfulness to the books and play is something I value very much so I tried really hard to insert bits that can justify the "father-son issues" Scorpius mentioned at the beginning of the play and Draco not being able to reach out to Scorpius after Astoria's death. I imagine at this point of their lives, both of them are insecure about their relationship. Draco has always felt guilty towards Scorpius and has felt that he doesn't deserve the boy and he's just not the kind of father who is comfortable showing his love given the parenting he had received. Because Draco has always felt distant around Scorpius, the son assumes wrongly that Draco is dissatisfied with him and not proud of him when the reality is, Draco couldn't be any prouder of him.
> 
> I have mentioned before that this is a sequel to "Difficult Confession", but I also want this fic to work as a prequel to "Scorpius' Letter", another story of mine which covered Draco's initial reaction to Scorpius' friendship with Albus. Spoiler alert: Scorpius was worried about Draco's reaction there. I could still see this happening despite what Draco had said here because befriending Muggle is okay doesn't necessarily means befriending son of enemy is okay for someone like Draco, at least in Scorpius' opinions.
> 
> Thank you for reading. I've a long-running work-in-progress fic called "The Other Malfoy" happening post-CC about Harry trying to make amends to Scorpius, I hope you could give it a chance :)


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